The House That Belief Built

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The House That Belief Built

By K. Lewis

August 2023

Hey Family! This is K, and I’m back with something that I wanted to share from Scripture that increased my faith, brought me joy, and inspired a hunger for more of Him. I want to talk to you about “The House That Belief Built”.  In Mark 9:23, Jesus said, “if you can believe, all things are possible to him that believes.”  

In this verse, Jesus is talking to a father whose son had been stricken with an evil spirit.  This spirit had been trying to kill his son since childhood.  This father had gone to the disciples asking them to cast the spirit out but they were unable to do so, so he pretty much begged Jesus saying, “if you can do anything, have compassion on us and help us.” This evil spirit wasn’t just tormenting the son.  Because the son was suffering, the whole family was suffering.  And the response of Jesus was priceless.  I’m paraphrasing the The Passion Translation here:  “IF? What do you mean, IF??  IF you are able to believe, all things are possible to the believer.”

And so let’s dig into this verse a little bit:

• The first two words of this verse are JESUS SAID.  Jesus is God and God is talking, and when God speaks, life happens.  Think of Genesis: creation takes place, galaxies are formed.  So from that point on, whatever is written or spoken is truth.  So what did Jesus say?  He said,”if you can believe it, all things are possible.”

• That word CAN is where the Greek word Dunamis comes from and Dunamis speaks of the power of God.  CAN means to have power either by your own ability and resources or by permission and resources of someone else.  In this case we know that it is referring to the latter.  We have power by permission.  JESUS SAID that if we can believe, all things are possible, so He is giving permission for us to have power and He’s providing the resources.

• Also, in terms of the word BELIEVE, it doesn’t simply mean to think something is true or to have confidence that something is true. That’s secular belief.  That’s wishing on a star. Throwing a penny in a fountain.  No, for the Christian, for us, BELIEVING is entrusting our confidence in God to obtain that thing for us.  It’s belief that springs from faith in our relationship with God.  The stronger the relationship, the stronger the power behind our belief. 

• Another thing about the word BELIEVE is that it comes from the Greek verb that means “to win ones favor”.  I LOVE THAT! Verbs are words that show an action, and I was immediately reminded of the selfless action of Jesus that won us the favor of God.  Because of His action, His sacrifice, one of the rewards of God’s favor that we reaped is that “IF WE CAN BELIEVE, all things are possible!”  Isn’t that awesome!?

• Now remember, the one telling us to Believe is the one who spoke existence into being, which means what He says has power, what He says goes, what He says, happens, so He is basically giving power to our belief! That means that when we believe, what we believe CAN be just as sure and real as the stars, the sea, the earth, the animals, the universe when He spoke them into existence!

• Now, doesn’t that fuel your faith!

• Now, you may be asking, “But K, the disciples couldn’t cast out the evil spirit, so doesn’t that mean that Jesus is really the only one who has that kind of belief?” 

• NO!  The disciples asked Him later in the chapter why they couldn’t cast out the spirit, and He told them, that kind of spirit would only come out by prayer and fasting. 

• So sometimes, belief on it’s own isn’t enough.   Which means if you’re asking and believing for something and it’s not happening, then I believe one of two things is true.

• ONE:  You’re believing in something that requires prayer and fasting in order for it to happen, and you haven’t been praying and fasting.  In this chapter, this evil spirit had been tormenting this man since he was a child.  He had a foothold in him that was hard to shake, and the disciples needed a strength and maturity that would only come from denying the flesh, fasting, and being in God’s face, prayer.  Some people, who are called to this type of ministry, must live a lifestyle of prayer and fasting.  Actually, I think a lifestyle of prayer and fasting should be the norm for all to a certain extent.  No, we are not all going to live in the wilderness and eat locusts like John the Baptist did, but following the advice the amazing writer Paul Billheimer and making prayer the main business of our day should be normal Christianity.   And then, setting aside time regularly to fast should also be normal Christianity, so that when the hard things are presented to us, like praying for healing or casting out evil spirits, we can be like Jesus and get the results that we are believing for.

• Now, what happens if what you are believing for still isn’t coming to pass, even after prayer and fasting? Well that means the second thing is true.

• TWO: In Matthew 26:39 it says, “He (Jesus)went a little farther and fell on His face, and prayed, saying, ‘O My Father, if it is possible, let this cup pass from Me; nevertheless, not as I will, but as You will.’” NKJV

• Remember, Jesus said in Mark 9:23 that all things are POSSIBLE if you believe.  That word POSSIBLE  is the same word He used in Matthew 26:39 in the Garden before He was taken to be crucified.  It’s the Greek word, DUNATOS, and it means able, mighty, strong in virtue, wealth, and influence.  Remember earlier when I talked about the word “can”?  When Mark 9:23 said, “if you CAN believe”?   That word can, means to have power.  Well, the word POSSIBLE, comes from that word.  Both of them talk about the power of God, the Dunamis power of God.

• So God CAN do anything.  All things are POSSIBLE with God. The power is in His hands.  And, because He is God, so is the right to say “yes” or “no”.

• That means we must believe like Jesus and pray like Jesus and say, “nevertheless, not my will, but your will be done.”  Listen to how The Passion Translation words Matthew 26:39 - “Then He walked a short distance away, and overcome with grief, He threw Himself facedown on the ground and prayed, ‘My Father, if there is any way you can deliver Me from this suffering, please take it from Me.  Yet what I want is not important, for I only desire to fulfill your plan for Me.’ Then the angel from heaven appeared to strengthen Him.”

• And so here is the conclusion: Are all things possible to those who believe? YES

• Will all things you believe for happen?  NO.

• If the answer is NO, will HE leave you in your grief or disappointment?  ABSOLUTELY NOT! Father God sent an angel from heaven to strengthen Jesus in the Garden for what He had to endure, because Father God did not give Jesus the answer He asked for.  He did not deliver Him from what He was going through.

• For us, we have Holy Spirit living inside of us.  He is the Comforter.  Peace Himself abides in us.  God’s NO should not destroy our joy.  

• Someone asked Bill Johnson, an amazing teacher from Bethel in Redding, California, about why God did something or doesn’t allow something; the context isn’t important, but Bill’s answer stuck with me.  He said something like this: “God is God and we are not, so it’s up to us to adjust.”

• If our belief is strong, if prayer is the main business of our day, according to 1 Thess. 5:17 which says, “pray without ceasing”, and we are fasting regularly, and God says NO, then it’s up to us to humble ourselves, and adjust to the NO. And guess what? We still win, because James 4:6 tells us that God gives joy, pleasure, delight, sweetness, charm, loveliness, favor, strength, knowledge, increased faith, and the desire to exercise Christian virtues, to the humble.  Or, to quote the verse the way you all know it, God gives GRACE to the humble. God gives all that to the humble, so even in His NO, we are blessed.

• And, we shouldn’t let NO stop us from believing for the next thing.  Disappointment, resentment, and even anger are natural human responses to unanswered prayer, but let your stronger spirit man deal with that quickly and exchange those things for hope and faith.  Then, remember all the times God did say YES, go back to the Word of God and read about all the miracles performed by Jesus and the apostles, all the YESSES of God.  Meditate on the words of the Apostle John in John 21:25 in The Passion Translation: “Jesus did countless things that I haven’t included here.  And if every one of His works were written down and described one by one, I suppose that the world itself wouldn’t have enough room to contain the books that would have to be written!” 

• So that means that God said YES a lot!!!! So keep believing.  Let prayer and fasting fuel your belief, and when He says YES, then let it fuel your faith for more.  When He allows your belief to bring about the desire that you want, testify on the mountain top so that others can hear of His goodness, greatness, kindness, and power!

• Belief builds the house, the temple of God, us, where Holy Spirit dwells and operates in us.  His yes and His no, make us stronger. Either way, we win!